Surges of solar activity may cause whales to run aground, possibly by disrupting the creatures' internal compasses, according to German scientists.University of Kiel researchers Klaus Vaneslow and Klaus Ricklefs looked at sightings of sperm whales found beached in the North Sea between 1712 and 2003.They compared the record with another set of historical data - astronomers' observations of sunspots, an indicator of solar radiation.They found that more whale strandings occurred when the sun's activity was high.The sun experiences cycles of activity which range from eight to 17 years, with 11 years being the average.Short cycles are linked with periods of high energy output, while long cycles are believed to be low energy.Changes in levels of solar radiation have a big effect on earth's magnetic field.The most notable events are solar flares that cause shimmering lights, called aurorae, in the magnetic fields in polar regions.Big solar flares can also disrupt telecommunications and power lines and knock out delicate electronic circuitry on satellites.The researchers found that of the 97 stranding events reported around the coastal countries of the North Sea over the 291 years, 90 per cent occurred when the sun cycles were below average in duration.

The Vanselow team speculate that whales may have a magnetic sense of orientation like pigeons, which are believed to navigate thanks to small magnetic crystals on their beaks.What could happen is that male sperm whales, following a migratory path from the Norwegian Sea, could become disorientated by minor changes in the geomagnetic field as they enter the North Sea, the pair suggest."In this shallow-shelf sea with a contourless seabed, often with soft bottom sediments, their deep-water sonar and other adaptations to their normal habitat may not function properly," they say.

View: Full Article | Source: abc.net.au

How terrible:(
That is just so sad that so many are lost on one occasion. No mension to the someone or someones that have to clean up the mess of dozens of whales.

Its so sad to see so many whales dying especially since they are facing extintion

sad ... but intresting to see how animals are forever intertwined with natural.

Here is more info on what the Sun was up to that might have effected the Whales.
By Whitley Strieber
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May 15, 2005 — Forecasters at the NOAA Space Environment Center in Boulder, Colo., observed a geomagnetic storm on Sunday, May 15, which they classified as an extreme event, measuring G-5—the highest level—on the NOAA Space Weather Scales.
The K-Index, which measures the degree of deviation of Earth's magnetic field over three-hour periods, registered 9, the highest possible number, meaning that our magnetic field has been deviated away from the sun as far as is believed to be possible.

There may be significant impacts from this geomagnetic storm, including power system voltage control problems, grid systems experiencing complete collapse and blackouts. Transformers may be damaged, and spacecraft and satellites may experience surface charging that could cause orientation problems and onboard voltage overloads. Low-frequency radio navigation and satellite uplink/downlink are likely to be affected, also.

The solar flare that led to this geomagnetic storm took place on Friday the 13th. Flaring and storms of this intensity are all but unknown during this phase of a normal solar cycle. Although solar scientists are generally unwilling to state this, and point to the fact that flares are observed at all times during the solar cycle, activity of this intensity, in fact, has not been recorded before during the sun's quiet periods.

This theory sounds convincing. It seems to me however that most of these hypotheses evade any kind of responsibility for man-made creations or products. Why not look to submarines? They use virtually the same system of sonar as whales. There have been theories that this sonar damages the whales' own tracking system and disorients them, causing them to 'beach themselves.' It is interesting how quick people are to condemn this perspective.